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College continues to climb national rankings for quality of education

August 20, 2009 |
Tom Perry

In its annual survey, U.S.News & World Report selected Marietta College as one of the best Baccalaureate Colleges in the Midwest.

In the 2010 edition of America’s Best Colleges, Marietta is tied for No. 6—up three spots from last year—among the top regional colleges and university in the Midwest. The publication has ranked Marietta among the top institutions in the Midwest for the past two decades.

"This, along with our recent ranking by Forbes.com, is very good news. The closer we are to the top of these lists, the greater our visibility," said Marietta Provost Dr. Rita Smith Kipp. "We deserve to be noticed! Our faculty are devoted to teaching and to our students, and increasingly they are active scholars as well."

Marietta, ranked ninth last year, moved into a three-way tie at sixth with Huntington (Ind.) University and Cedarville University. Leading the Midwest rankings is Taylor (Ind.) University followed by Ohio Athletic Conference rival Ohio Northern at No. 2.

Marietta’s overall score increased six points to an 81 (on a 100-point scale). The two biggest increases came from Average Graduation Rate (up three percentage points to 60 percent) and Percentage of Classes under 20 (up nine percentage points to 77 percent).

"Marietta College’s inclusion as one of the finest institutions in the latest U.S. News survey is gratifying recognition of the efforts of the broader Marietta College community as well as the effectiveness of our educational program," said Dr. Jean A. Scott, Marietta president. "This is a mark of respect to the many Marietta College faculty members, students, staff, trustees, friends, alumni, parents and so many others who for 175 years have worked carefully to develop a culture of distinction at Marietta."

Marietta has traditionally done well in rankings. Earlier this month Forbes.com, which is in its second year of ranking U.S. colleges and universities, listed Marietta in the top 19 percent of “America’s Best Colleges.”

Marietta moved up 56 spots from a year ago to the 112th Best College. The rankings include 600 of the roughly 4,000 undergraduate institutions. The ranking places Marietta between the Knox College (111) and Bates College (113).